Maxim Institute - real issues - No. 263

Maxim Institute - real issues - No. 263 26 July 2007 www.maxim.org.nz

Marriage-the healthy choice Cash, votes and free speech Still too many failing

IN THE NEWS

Auckland does well in honesty survey Britain's alcohol law under review

Still too many failing

The latest report on New Zealand School Leavers has just been released, showing that while more pupils are obtaining qualifications, too many are still being let down.

The report, which looks at the levels of qualifications attained in 2006 by pupils when they leave school, found that overall rates of school leavers with qualifications have continued to increase steadily in recent years. However, attainment levels are still vastly different across ethnicities, with Maori and Pasifika students well below the average, and across the sexes, with boys falling behind girls.

'Maori school leavers are over-represented in the group that has little or no formal attainment with 22 percent of Maori leavers at this level (compared with 11 percent for total school leavers).' The percentage of children leaving school with 'little or no formal attainment' has been slowly declining across all ethnic groups for the last few years, but Maori and Pasifika pupils are still not closing the gap with Asian and New Zealand European pupils.

There is a clear progression in achievement from decile 1 to 10 schools, with only 14 percent of school leavers from decile 1 schools attaining at least UE or a Level 3 qualification. Whereas for decile 10 schools the figure is over 60 percent. Similarly just over 20 percent of those leaving decile 1 schools have little or no formal attainment compared to less than 5 percent in decile 10 schools.

There can be little doubt that the current education system is not meeting the needs of those at low decile schools-which generally means those from low-income families, a group amongst which Maori and Pasifika pupils are over-represented. Our current education policy tends to segregate pupils into schools based on their parents' income, with the result that low decile schools have an extra hard challenge giving those pupils a good chance to succeed. While there are no quick fix answers for sorting out the problem, current initiatives, such as encouraging teachers to lift their expectations of their pupils, need to be combined with broader change that will allow parents more freedom to access good schools and for more innovation within the sector. Too many of our kids are still failing.

Read 2006 School Leavers

Write to the editor

Cash, votes and free speech

The Government introduced the Electoral Finance Bill to Parliament this week. If passed, it would put in place heavier restrictions on those involved in election campaigns, and the way they use their money. The Government hopes that the Bill 'will restore confidence in a fair and transparent electoral process,' and will protect the system from 'the undue influence of wealthy interest groups.' But whether these aims are fair statements of the problem is disputable.

The Bill would create tougher restrictions on 'political donations; election expenses; third party advertising; and compliance and enforcement,' supposedly leading to greater accountability. All involved-'registered parties, candidates, and third parties'-would be required to appoint a financial agent, who would be responsible for the campaign finances, reporting to the Electoral Commission on money received and on all election expenditure.

All donations given towards a political campaign would have to be disclosed to the Electoral Committee if above a specified amount. Tight limitations would be placed on anonymous donations to third parties-they would not be able to receive anonymous donations above $500. The Bill would also lengthen the period of time covered by these rules from the current 90 days prior to Election Day, to beginning on January 1 of the election year, giving an obvious advantage to the incumbent government, which can continue to promote its policies.

The Bill's restrictive and distrustful approach to free speech is worrying. Severe limits on third party advertising add complicated and difficult requirements, which may discourage those at the grassroots level from getting involved and speaking their piece. We need more grassroots democratic engagement, more listening from politicians. The Bill has the potential to give us less, by strangling free speech with unduly restrictive law.

Most importantly, this Bill will not stop elections from being bought. No one has yet shown that allegedly shadowy rich and powerful underground groups, conspiracies or cabals have been able to successfully buy elections in New Zealand. However, a government can 'buy' an election using its control of the Budget, to entrench its position by dishing out incentives, such as interest-free student loans. The issue of money and elections is one that will always be fraught, but moves that cut off the grassroots and remove the voice of the people from politics cannot be good ones.

Read the Electoral Finance Bill

Write to the editor

Marriage-the healthy choice

While debate on the role and importance of marriage has been raging for years overseas, in New Zealand such debates are not so frequently heard. International research reveals various ways in which marriage is beneficial to society and individuals, including more than 100 years of research that shows married people have better physical health, on average, than unmarried. Married people get sick less often and tend to live longer than single or divorced people. Emerging research also suggests it is likely there are health differences between those who are married and those living in de facto relationships.

There are three main reasons offered for these health differences. One is that married couples' long-term mutual investment in each other encourages healthy habits and discourages unhealthy ones. Unlike those in more casual relationships, married couples expect to rely on each other in the long term for childcare and financial support, so they are more likely to take an active interest in each other's health. While people living together in de facto relationships may also benefit from this to some degree, statistics show that on average marriage lasts longer than de facto relationships.

Therefore, accumulated health benefits are not as significant over time outside of marriage. Secondly, married couples generally accumulate more wealth and this is associated with better health, due to improved diets, and a greater ability to visit doctors and dentists and to take out medical insurance. There is also a link between relationship quality and physical health. Married couples tend to have higher quality relationships than those in less formal relationships, often because of the added security that comes from long-term mutual commitment.

Internationally, sceptics who question the benefits of marriage have argued that marriage does not cause better health for adults-or any other associated advantages observed for the married-but that healthier and wealthier people are more likely to marry, therefore ensuring that they will continue to have the best health over the long term. The weight of social science evidence, though, does not support this view. This is because long-term research shows health advantages for married couples accrue after they marry; they are not evident beforehand. Similarly, after divorce, physical health tends to deteriorate, which indicates there are a number of factors associated with marriage that lead to better health. The fact that there are many social and taxpayer costs related to ill health reminds us that marriage is not only personally beneficial, it is a social good as well, not just for individuals, but for the whole community.

Read a Maxim Institute research note on The physical health benefits of marriage

Write to the editor

IN THE NEWS

Britain's alcohol law under review

Gordon Brown announced at a press conference this week that he is set to review the 24-hour drinking law, introduced in Britain in 2005. Since the law allowed more freedom around the sale of alcohol, figures have been produced that reportedly claim this relaxation has led to an increased problem in binge drinking and alcohol related crime. Brown says the primary purpose behind the review is to consider how well the new regulations are working, and will 'examine in an objective way all of the evidence.'

Auckland does well in honesty survey

A recent survey by the Reader's Digest found Auckland to be the eighth most honest city, compared to the survey results from the main cities of 32 different countries. In each city 30 cellphones were deliberately abandoned by researchers, who watched how people behaved when they found the lost phone. Among the countries surveyed, the average amount of phones returned was 20; in Auckland however 23 of the 30 phones were returned. Ljubljana, a main city in Slovenia, was found to be the most honest city worldwide, while Hong Kong and Kuala Lumpur ranked equally as the least honest.

TALKING POINT

'Each divorce is the death of a small civilization.'

Pat Conroy

A registered charitable trust, funded by donations, Maxim Institute values your interest and support.

Click here to find out how you can support Maxim Institute

Maxim Institute's regular email publication, Real Issues, provides thought-provoking analysis of developments in policy and culture in New Zealand and around the world. You can express you views on any of the articles featured in Real Issues by writing a letter to the editor. A selection of the best letters will be posted each week on Maxim Institute's website .

view online | unsubscribe

Brought to you by: Outreach Software

ENDS

© Scoop Media